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Read. Follow. Verify.Pennsylvania House Bill 746 Overhauls Appointment Process for Fish and Boat and Game Commissions
Last action · March 3, 2025: Referred to GAME AND FISHERIES, March 3, 2025Sponsors: David Maloney and 4 others
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What This Bill Would Do
Pennsylvania House Bill 746 alters how members of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the Pennsylvania Game Commission are selected, shifting power toward local sportsmen's groups and licensed anglers, boaters, and hunters through a nomination and voting process before legislative confirmation. The bill sets specific criteria for who qualifies as a voting sportsman or nominating group and revokes any authority of the Governor's Advisory Council for Hunting, Fishing and Conservation to select or appoint commissioners.
Licensed hunters, anglers, boaters, and local not-for-profit conservation groups gain direct roles in nominating and voting on candidates for state wildlife and fishing commissions, replacing exclusive gubernatorial appointment and Senate confirmation with a public selection process.
- The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the Pennsylvania Game Commission are independent administrative agencies responsible for managing and protecting the state's aquatic and wildlife resources. context
- House Bill 746 alters long-standing appointment practices where commissioners were historically chosen by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Sportsmen's groups
Not-for-profit membership organizations are granted the authority to nominate candidates for commission membership within their respective districts.
Licensed sportsmen
Qualifying resident anglers, boaters, and hunters gain the ability to cast votes for commission candidates at point-of-sale license locations.
Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
The department is required to compile lists of sportsmen's groups, manage notifications via certified mail and newspapers, establish point-of-sale voting procedures, and submit candidate lists to the Governor.
Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission
The method by which its commissioners are selected, appointed, and confirmed is entirely restructured.
Pennsylvania Game Commission
The method by which its commissioners are selected, appointed, and confirmed is entirely restructured.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible to vote for commission candidates under this bill?
How do local organizations participate in the new commissioner selection process?
What role do the legislative committees play in confirming commissioners?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
1 action- Mar 3, 2025HouseCommitteeReferred to GAME AND FISHERIES, March 3, 2025
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Decentralization of Commission Appointments
The legislation shifts appointment influence from centralized executive and Senate confirmation to a localized nomination and point-of-sale voting framework involving sportsmen.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.palegis.us
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
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